


Wait, This Isn't Tunisia

by BTN6



Category: Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Crossover, Eventual Romance, F/M, French Characters, Oola Lives, Space Flight, World War II
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 11:55:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29243190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BTN6/pseuds/BTN6
Summary: Renaud Gaudin is a Free French pilot who was transported to the desert planet of Tatooine during a mission above Tunisia. As he tries to transition to the new world, he meets and romantically bonds with a green-skinned former slave while finding an alluring opportunity to fly spacecraft in combat.
Relationships: Oola/Original Male Character(s)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	Wait, This Isn't Tunisia

_Italicized Dialogue = French_

**Gabès, Tunisia**

_April 6, 1943_

Sitting in the snug cockpit of my Potez 631, I took a moment to admire the predawn sky of Tunisia, seeing no presence of enemy fighters or a sunrise. It had been an hour since my ground-attack mission had started, we were ordered to deliver a surprise attack on the Nazis to push them out of Gabès using the darkness as cover. Looking down, I could see the columns of German soldiers, although it was still too dark to tell what they were doing. I checked the rear of my plane, seeing a few bullet holes scattered about the fuselage and no rear gunner. I lost my gunner on the last mission, and last I heard, he's still in the infirmary in critical condition, I think it was a bullet in his jaw. Poor guy. I haven't gotten a replacement yet. The flak had started to ring the night sky, which snapped me out of my thoughts. Our unit decided to carry out the attack right then.

" _Dive on the Nazis! Give them the morning of their lives!_ " ordered the flight leader.

" _Affirmative, sir!_ " I responded.

We dove on the Germans and I dropped my bombs on what appeared to be a vehicle and some men standing next to it. I pulled out of the dive and looked back at the damage, seeing a fire and panicked Germans scattering about like birds.

" _Successful hit! It looks like a fire has started._ "

" _Good job._ "

Sometimes, I wonder if I'm really supposed to be killing people as if they were mere footnotes in my life, but then again, these are the same people who are oppressing my family back in my homeland, France. Every time I wonder about the consequences of this war, I remind myself that I'm fighting for my family and friends and the ability for me to see them again, ever since I left pilot school to defend my country at the age of 20.

" _Great work, everyone. Head back to base,_ " commanded the flight leader.

With that, I oriented my plane towards my unit and got into formation, making sure that I didn't accidentally collide with another airplane. After getting into formation, I took a brief moment to stretch, getting ready for the long flight back to base. Suddenly, I blacked out, not knowing whether it was the lack of sleep, a piece of shrapnel from the flak, or the stress of war and death. I don't know how long I was out for, but I eventually awakened and found myself somewhere else.

**Western Dune Sea, Tatooine**

_4 ABY_

Realizing that my plane was still flying and I wasn't dead, I quickly noticed the lack of airplanes and no sounds of a skirmish in my surroundings. As I glanced across the sandy waves of Tunisia, stick in my hands and my flight nowhere in sight, I noticed the two suns rising in the east and filling the horizon with warm light. _Where am I? This looks like Tunisia, yet at the same time, it isn't Tunisia. The sky never has two suns._ All I saw on the ground was sand, sand, and more sand, just like in Tunisia, except the air somehow felt drier and sandier, even in the cockpit of my Potez. At least my compass still worked and I had some food and water. _If I am to survive in whatever world I am in, I must keep flying somewhere. How did I even get here in the first place?_

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a tall building standing out from the dreary sands of this world. Situated upon a somewhat large hill, it looked to me like a grand palace constructed from rusty steel with a large central tower and smaller towers surrounding the central tower. It would be something you'd find on the cover of a science fiction novel.

Immediately, I became suspicious of the building, not knowing who owns it or what purpose it serves. Analyzing it further, I came to the conclusion that it is probably a fortress for war, something I should probably avoid, as what can I do if whatever lies inside attacks me? It was not until I spotted a green-skinned figure running away from the building that I decided to land to try and find out about my current circumstances.

Descending in altitude, from what I could tell with the minimal light, I noticed that the figure was a woman clad in skimpy garments, possessing strange hair-like appendages hanging from her head, most likely an exotic dancer. I couldn't help but pity her, knowing that one can only be forced into such a lifestyle to sell their body. She was probably escaping from that same palace, another reason to avoid it. If so, I must approach her carefully so as not to frighten her off. Then again, airplanes are loud, and landing one takes time. I landed as far away from the palace and the figure as possible, not wanting to surprise anybody, yet still close enough to find my way back to the cockpit. I took off my flight gear, climbed out of the cockpit, and put my holstered pistol on my leg, just in case. I could begin to hear faint sounds of fighting within the palace, yet another reason not to go inside. I then started walking towards the woman, half in desperation and half in hope.

After getting close enough, I decided to try speaking in French, my native tongue. " _Miss, do you happen to know where I am?_ "

The woman kept on running, so I tried speaking in English. "Mademoiselle, do you know where I am?"

This time, she turned around and said in a quivering and weakened voice, "If you work for Jabba, then I will keep running."

"Jabba?" I replied in confusion. "Who is Jabba?"

Upon hearing the question, the woman stopped and turned to face me. "You don't know who Jabba is?"

"No?"

"He is the ruling crime lord on this planet, Tatooine."

"Tatooine? Another planet? Where is Earth?"

"Earth?"

I took a moment to deliberate upon hearing her response. "I'm not entirely sure, but if you don't know what Earth is, then that must mean I was transported here to this other planet, which you call Tatooine."

"We have to get out of here, otherwise, Jabba will surely recapture me."

"Well, I have an escape route. My airplane is nearby and we can fly out of here."

"Fly? Thank you for your help. Let's go now."

"Je vous en prie, mademoiselle."

With that, we started running back towards my Potez 631, sitting on the smooth sands of Tatooine. I opened the second seat canopy for the woman, intending for her to sit there so that she wouldn't accidentally fire the rear machine gun.

"Mademoiselle, sit here please. Take care to step lightly into my airplane."

The woman gracefully climbed into the plane, which surprised me, given her slave-like appearance as I closed the second canopy. I then opened the cockpit, climbed in, and put on my flight gear, starting both engines as quickly as I could while lowering the flaps to takeoff position. When both engines finally started, I closed the canopy and throttled up, kicking back sand as I saw hideous pig-like figures running towards my airplane in the corner of my eye.

"Merde! What are those things?!" I frantically asked as I tried to keep the aircraft straight.

"Those are Jabba's guards, hurry up!"

"I'm trying to take off! Allow me to concentrate!"

After what seemed like forever, the plane started gaining lift and rose up as I could see the pig-like figures struggling to chase after my now airborne plane. As I rose the gear and flaps and climbed to cruising altitude, I took a moment to gaze at the sky, dotted with two suns instead of one. A few minutes of silence passed, neither me nor the woman knowing where to go before the woman decided to gather the courage to speak up.

"Let me explain what was happening earlier, even if this doesn't make sense to you. I fled from Jabba's Palace after a skirmish started by some Tusken Raiders. It all started when he began pulling on my chain, demanding my body after a dance. I resisted his advances, which could have gotten me killed. If it wasn't for the raiders distracting Jabba, I think I would have been eaten alive by his rancor. The raiders injured Jabba and shot my chain off, and then I ran outside, came across you, and now we're here."

"I get the basics of what happened, but what is a rancor?"

"Rancors are horrifying beasts. Jabba owns one, and I saw how he would execute prisoners by feeding them alive to his rancor. I narrowly avoided that same fate by escaping from his palace just as it looked like he was about to drop me down there."

"What a brutal man. I don't even think the Nazis would go that far."

"Jabba is actually a Hutt, not a man."

"A hut? How can a house be alive?"

"H-U-T-T, not H-U-T, hutts are giant slugs with ugly faces and stubby arms."

I took a moment to sigh. "Please tell me normal humans or humanoids exist on this planet."

"I have seen people of your species before in Jabba's Palace. So yes."

"I just realized that I haven't introduced myself. My name is Renaud Gaudin, you can just call me Renaud. I am from France, which is a country on the planet Earth. Four years ago, I joined the air force of my country's military to defend against the Nazi invasion, and I was flying this plane when I was transported to this planet. And you?" _I'm not telling her about the surrender. That would be too embarrassing._

The woman took a brief moment to collect her thoughts before speaking. "My name is Oola, and I am from the planet Ryloth. I am a Twi'lek, just as you are a human. I trained at my homeworld's dance academy and became a dancer, and I found success in doing so, but I was tricked into becoming a slave to Jabba. He would constantly beat me and harass me, forcing me to dance with these skimpy clothes. It was not until now that I was able to escape from his clutches."

I was legitimately surprised at her backstory. She was on her way to becoming a professional dancer, yet she was tricked into slavery. And to think that she did this out of desperation.

"Mademoiselle, I am sorry for all that you've been through. I hope no one can do such things to you again. Take that chain off, you're a free woman, Oola."

With those words, Oola removed the collar and chain from her neck, opened the canopy, and threw it outside, closing the canopy immediately after.

"All my life, the people I've met have only taken advantage of my body. Even my father was ready to sell me at any time. Renaud, you're the first person I've met who actually cares about me."

"It is nice you think of me that way, Oola. Anyway, where is the nearest city? Fuel can't last forever."

"To tell you the truth, I do not know. Jabba has never let me outside ever since my enslavement."

"All I have is a map of Tunisia." I rummaged for my map. "Hold on, it looks different? It says 'Map of Tatooine' on the top and it's even got sectors and major locations marked, like Jabba's Palace. It must have been replaced when I was transported."

"That is fortunate. We have to get to Mos Eisley, it's the largest city on Tatooine."

"Mos Eisley, got it – right there. It's far, I don't know if we'll make it, but at least the fuel gauge is reading nearly full."

"We can only try."

I measured the angle to Mos Eisley using my protractor and oriented my plane towards that heading, wondering what may come next for the two of us after we arrive at Mos Eisley.  
  
_8:00 A.M._

As we were cruising along the dreary and hot skies of Tatooine, I suddenly heard a mysterious sound, followed by strange aircraft passing by at what seemed to be lightning speed.

"Oola, what were those things?"

"Spacecraft. Normally you would see them in space, although these ones are flying in the atmosphere."

"Spacecraft? You mean people figured out how to travel in space?"

"Yes, they allow people to travel between planets in the galaxy. I've never been in one for a while since I was locked down in Jabba's Palace as a slave for many years."

"Galaxy? There are more planets besides Tatooine outside of this system, and people are able to travel between them? Even Earth wasn't that technologically advanced."

"Yes, the galaxy is so large that there are several regions that haven't been fully explored yet, like the Unknown Regions."

"It is amazing that this universe has figured out how to fly in space. Someday, I'd like to fly a spacecraft."

_10:00 A.M._

It took around 2 more hours of flight before we could begin to see the grand city in the desert wasteland, situated on top of a plateau. Oola told me that's the only way we would identify Mos Eisley. By now, both suns had risen in the sky, beating their harsh light into the cockpit of my plane. I noticed Oola sweating, so I gave her my handkerchief out of politeness. She wiped her forehead before returning the used handkerchief to me, so I made a mental note to wash it later. As for myself, I just wiped the sweat off my own face with my arm instead of using the used handkerchief. The fuel gauge was reading nearly empty, so I hoped that this was the right location as I descended in altitude.

"Oola, this is Mos Eisley?"

"Yes, Renaud."

"Alright, we're landing. This is probably your first time, so please hold onto something. It can get bumpy."

I found a long strip of brown dirt near Mos Eisley and proceeded to orient my plane in the direction of the strip so I could land there. I lowered my flaps down to full position and lowered my gear as well, hoping that they wouldn't get stuck. I slowed my aircraft down to 200 km/h and proceeded to land on the strip as smoothly as I could. It was a rough landing, but it was okay enough. I climbed out of the cockpit and checked the undercarriage and frame for any damage, finding none. I then let Oola climb out of the aircraft. We landed around 100 meters from the outer reaches of the city, so walking there wouldn't be a problem. Fuel, on the other hand, I was unsure about, since I wasn't really sure if the city would have the right kind of fuel or not.

I took out my canteen and took a sip. "Alright, we're here. Would you like some water? You must be thirsty."

"Water?" asked Oola, her eyes widening in surprise. She took the canteen out of my hands and poured a conservative amount in her mouth. Oola then returned the canteen to me. "Thank you, Renaud."

"Je vous en prie, mademoiselle." _It seems that there's a water shortage on Tatooine, based on Oola's reaction to my offering of water. Not surprised, considering this looks like a desert planet._

Suddenly, I could hear someone running towards us, saying, "You cannot park your shuttle here! You must park in one of Mos Eisley's 362 hangars." Turning my head around, I could see a man wearing what looked to be a police uniform.

I replied, " _Good day, mister, would you prefer to converse in French?_ " The man stared at me in confusion, so I said in English, "Bonjour, monsieur. I have never been on this planet before. I am unfamiliar with its customs regarding aircraft storage." _Why does nobody here speak French, only English?_

"Ah, I see you are unfamiliar around here. Welcome to Tatooine, travelers. Unfortunately, you cannot park your shuttle here, so follow me to the hangar."

"May I see your identification? I have no other way to know if you are a legitimate officer of the law or not."

"No problem." The man handed me a card with his photo and strange writing printed on the card.

"Oola, can you read this?" I handed the card to her.

"This is written in Aurebesh," said Oola. "At the top, it says 'Mos Eisley Police Authority.' It looks legitimate enough." Oola handed the card back to the officer.

"Well, it's good that you were suspicious of me. Mos Eisley harbors much of the criminal underground in the galaxy, and our police authority as a whole doesn't seem to curb it. Follow me to the hangars."

"Alright, monsieur." _Clearly, their money is going somewhere other than law enforcement if there is that much criminal activity. This officer doesn't seem to be corrupt, but I can never be sure._

Me and Oola got back into my airplane and followed the officer, taxiing to a large set of hangars at the edge of the city. Upon reaching a smaller complex of hangars, the officer opened a hangar for us.

"You can park here, mister. There is no fee in Imperial credits to pay."

"That is fortunate," I commented as I taxiied into the hangar. I don't think they would accept francs. After parking, I and Oola climbed out of my Potez and exited the hangar. "How long can I keep my aircraft here?"

"As long as you want," answered the officer as he closed the hangar door, giving me the keys to the hangar. "If you need anything, just ask for me, Officer Parnan."

"Merci, Officer Parnan. Where is the currency exchange?"

"Walk down the street and take the second left to exit the hangar complex, then walk straight for a block before turning at the first right. It should be a building with a large dome on top."

As the officer left the area to take care of other things, we went to the currency exchange, following the officer's instructions. Surprisingly, they accepted the 40 francs I had on myself and exchanged them for 40 coins of currency imprinted with a strange symbol. Then, I and Oola started walking around Mos Eisley aimlessly, trying to find fuel for my plane and more modest clothes for Oola so that she wouldn't look like my slave. Eventually, I obtained what appeared and smelled like a drum filled with gasoline from a scrap dealer for 10 coins, although I was hesitant to put it into my aircraft. As for Oola, she bought a plain tunic for 20 coins, which made her appear more modest and feel more confident about her life as a free woman.

We then returned to the hangar so that I could fill my Potez with gasoline from the fuel drum. As I finished filling the aircraft with fuel, I set the fuel drum aside and saw another man approaching me, wearing a brown jacket and black trousers.

"Are you the pilot that just flew into Mos Eisley this morning?"


End file.
